1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to network-based collaboration tools, and more particularly, to a geobrowser collaboration system which synchronizes and shares information among multiple remote geobrowsers for data visualization and collaborative decision-making in emergency and other situations.
2. Description of the Background
Geobrowsers allow the integration of disparate datasets available on the internet by mapping them onto 3D virtual globes, 2D maps or other geolocated datasets. Open source geobrowsers such as NASA's World Wind and commercially licensed geobrowsers such as Google™ Earth and ESRI's ArcGlobe, ESRI's Flex Viewers and Google™ Maps are widely used by the general public as well as by researchers, decision and policy makers, emergency management and government officials. It is possible to integrate various datasets into these geobrowsers, giving users new data visualizations and new analysis capabilities. Such datasets may, for example, include spatially referenced data such as satellite and aerial imagery, digital terrain models, vector data such as locations, water bodies and buildings, and real-time coordinate data for location-tracking. All may be placed on the 2D map or 3D globe surface and displayed at their proper geographic location. Geobrowsers are expected to have a significant impact on managing knowledge, structuring workflow, and communications. Google Earth's user base is more than 500 million users, and NASA estimates that World Wind attracted 10 million users within the first year of operation.
Geobrowsers have untapped potential in situations where multiple users collaborate, working together in a coordinated fashion, towards a common goal. Large scale natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, forest fires or flash floods, require coordinated action to allocate resources and deploy the most appropriate response. Decision makers, emergency response personnel and public administrators typically need to be capable of accessing, distributing and processing a wide range of map information including earth observation data, geographical information and spatially-mapped live sensor data such as real-time video, satellite storm imagery, and other useful datasets. The ability to access such resources on a 2D or 3D geobrowser would be extremely valuable for emergency management and disaster mitigation.
The ability for multiple remote users to access such resources and collaborate on the geobrowser has the potential to help save lives, limit damage, and reduce the costs of dealing with emergencies. Geospatial collaboration should be an essential part of every stage of emergency management, from planning through response and recovery to mitigation of future emergencies. Unfortunately, geobrowsers cannot collaborate, there are no third party collaboration tools suitable for geobrowser collaboration, and so the foregoing potential is entirely unmet.
Users themselves have tried a few ad hoc attempts at solutions. For example, geospatial data collaboration has been attempted using generic screen-sharing presentation software such as Cisco WebEx™ or Microsoft SharePoint™, and project collaboration tools such as Basecamp, Google™ Docs and Wiggio. However, this ad hoc approach only provides multiple remote users with the ability to view a common screen and exchange communications. Users only see a replica of the lead collaborator's geobrowser and whatever datasets and annotations were on it. This is similar to watching television, suppresses participation, and fails to engage the collaborators. Participants cannot add to the lead's geobrowser any additional data or information. Additionally, when the screen-sharing presentation is completed any geospatial data used by the lead collaborator is no longer available for the other participants, and they cannot review it or merge it with other datasets on their local systems.
United States Patent Application No. 20070174331 by Wolf et al. shows a collaboration system that maintains spatial reference information for collaborative visualization. A web-enabled database of business data points can be displayed simultaneously on multiple collaborators' visual screens. As one collaborator updates a point location the others see the change in their visualizations. It appears that this is done simply by associating spatial reference information with the business data points, and displaying on a shared map using Microsoft Sharepoint™, a known platform for document and file collaboration.
There is no geobrowser collaboration system that allows collaboration among users of different geobrowsers, let alone controlled sharing in which remote users selectively control, edit, and manipulate shared content in real time such as geospatial datasets. What is needed is a collaboration system for allowing multiple geobrowsers to communicate over local networks and the Internet to create a real collaborative experience over computer desktops for collaborative decision making that delivers accurate information on emerging situations while collaborating with multiple remotely-located partners, advisors, experts, specialists and authorities in various jurisdictions, regardless of the geobrowser, hardware or operating systems used. The present invention provides a true “hands-on” geo-experience for all participants, allowing users to manipulate and understand shared datasets on their own geobrowser virtual globe or geolocated map of choice, much more efficiently than by any other known method. This results in an enhanced user experience, which promotes engagement, and translates into increased awareness and understanding of emergency conditions.